Dementia is defined as a decline in mental ability severe enough to interfere with one's daily life. Over five million people suffer from dementia in the United States alone and this number is predicted to increase. Alzheimer's and Parkinson's are common examples of dementia.
One problem in caring for those suffering from dementia is that they may become confused of their surroundings and tend to wander and get lost. If these individuals are not located in a timely manner, they are at risk of injury. To compound the problem, many of the individuals suffering from dementia will not have the mental acuity to remember their name or address even in the event they encounter someone trying to assist them.
The present disclosure is designed to reduce this problem by providing a wearable device designed to track individuals with relation to a predefined geographical area such as one's home or care facility and also one's general location once they are outside of the predefined geographical area. The device is wirelessly connected to a tracking system utilizing macro- and micro-location monitoring technology. The device may also include additional features useful for dementia patients such as the ability to lock and unlock certain doors. Although the device is designed to track patients, it could also be employed for alternative uses. For example, the devices and systems presently disclosed may be used for pets as an alternative to a traditional invisible electronic fence. Another example would be to use the presently disclosed devices and systems for tracking valuable items such as laptop computers, mobile phones, or any other valuable item.
The device can be in the form of a stand-alone device such as wristband, anklet, or it can be imbedded in the patient's clothing or accessories; alternatively, the device can be in a form that clips on to the patient's clothing or accessories. The device includes a power source, a processor, an antenna, a Global Positioning Receiver (GPS) chip, and a Low Energy Bluetooth (BLE) chip. In some embodiments, the device may include additional sensors and equipment to monitor a patient's well-being such as a blood pressure monitor, a heart rate monitor, a gyroscope, an accelerometer, or other sensor that can detect or monitor information related to the patient's health. Some embodiments of the device may also include sensors designed to acquire information about the wearer's environment such as a thermometer, a light sensor, magnetic field detector, or a microphone. The device may also be equipped with notifiers configured to notify the patient of any alert generated by the central processing unit. These notifiers can be in the form of any technology that would catch the attention of the patient so that he or she is aware that the central processing unit has received information that may mean the patient could be in danger. Some exemplary notifiers include vibration motors, LED lights, and an audible speaker.
In addition to the device, the present disclosure teaches a system that may track and monitor the device, log the collected information, send the information to a central processing unit, and generate alerts. The data received by the central processing unit and alerts generated by the central processing unity may be accessed through a user interface that can be displayed on any computing device with Internet access. Another component of the system may be a specified predetermined area in which the patient can move freely. The predetermined area can be set by placing beacons throughout the area in which the patient can move freely, beyond which it may be unsafe or undesirable for the patient to venture without supervision. If the patient wanders outside the predetermined area, a signal is sent to the central processing unit, which then generates a signal or alarm to notify the patient and/or the patient's caregiver. Once outside the predetermined area, the GPS functionality will activate so that the patient can be located.
Equivalent reference components point to corresponding parts throughout the several views. Even though the drawings depict manifestations of components and attributes to the present disclosure, certain features are magnified due to the fact that not only are the drawings not scalable, but also because this method is the best way to illustrate the present disclosure. Wherein, the illustrations depicted are manifestations of the disclosure, and such illustrations shall in no way be interpreted as limiting the scope of the disclosure.